Nations third ranked player sets decision date

Eric Bossi | Rivals.com Basketball Recruiting Analyst

As it turns out, the nation's No. 3 player in the class of 2013 will be making a decision a little bit earlier than expected.

Initially, Jabari Parker had said that he might wait a bit longer to make his decision. However, with all of his visits out of the way the 6-foot-8 forward at Chicago (Ill.) Simeon is going to go ahead and make his choice.

Multiple sources have confirmed that the five-star senior will announce his decision between BYU, Duke, Florida, Michigan State and Stanford during a press conference at Simeon on Dec. 20.

Because of his perimeter skills, size that allows him to play on the interior, high ranking and penchant for winning -- three state titles in three years at the highly visible Simeon -- Parker's recruitment and high school career has been among the most scrutinized in quite some time.

Despite that scrutiny, Parker and his family have managed to keep his final decision a relative mystery.

The potential of a BYU choice is intriguing and Parker's Mormon faith has been a big part of the Cougars involvement. However, a pick of either them or Stanford would come as a surprise at this point.

Duke and Michigan State have been considered the leaders for most of Parker's recruitment while Billy Donovan and the Gators have been much more involved than given credit for.

Headed to decision day, it would appear that if anybody has nudged ahead of the pack that it is the Blue Devils.

There will likely be plenty of new rumors within the next week leading up to Parker's decision. But for now, the only thing that appears to be a lock as that the rumors will all end next Thursday.